# Lighting with cedar strips?



## pdisme (Sep 14, 2011)

I was at a local B&M the other day and they had jars of cedar strips sitting on the bar. Now I had seen this before at other lounges and always just, naively, assumed they were for people to put in bags with cigars they bought similar to how some sticks come wrapped in cedar. This particular lounge had a jar close enough to every seat at the bar to grab a strip so that got me curious enough to ask about them and then I learned they were there for use in lighting cigars; glad I asked lol.

I'm curious how many actually light in this manner and their thoughts on it? Everyone there was already lit up so he said if I come in at a time he's going to light a new cigar he'd show me how it's done. I use a torch currently so I assume the only benefit to me would be adding the cedar to the mix since there's no lighter fluid smell, etc. from a torch?


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## NoShhhSherlock (Mar 30, 2011)

I have tried this a few times but Have better luck with wooden matches. For me, it's difficult to toast the foot and light with a cedar strip.


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## ghe-cl (Apr 9, 2005)

It's referred to as a spill or cedar spill. Many people like to use them because they involve no chemicals, the flame is fairly large but not so intense that it will quickly burn the tobacco and it just adds to the lighting ritual. It also imparts the cedar flavor to the first couple of puffs, which some enjoy as well.


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## piperdown (Jul 19, 2009)

I'll do this a couple of times a year and that's about it.
It takes more time than using my torch and I guess it puts me in a more relaxed frame of mind since I'm focused on the cigar and the flame.
It's a nice change of pace as are other ways and means to enjoy a cigar.


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## TheGeneral (Sep 16, 2011)

i have tried and tried but if there is even a slight breeze i cannot get the spill to stay lit. its kind of frustrating and just move to my torch or cheap lighter


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## StogieNinja (Jul 29, 2009)

pdisme said:


> Lighting with cedar strips...


...is a pain in the ass. But great occasionally when you're in a perfectly still environment and willing to take your time, and on a really nice cigar ensures a great experience from the get go.


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## pdisme (Sep 14, 2011)

Cool; I'll try to get a little walk through on it next time I'm at the lounge just to give it a try, but it does sound like it would take more time than I'd typically want to spend on the lighting phase of enjoying a smoke.


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## David_ESM (May 11, 2011)

Tips for Lighting a Cigar | Cigar Aficionado - YouTube


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## JMcC (Aug 10, 2010)

I've tried, burnt my fingers, and tried again  I can actually notice the flavour the strips embark on the cigar in the first couple puffs so if I have some extra time and some strips laying around I usually try lighting with the cedar.


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## neil (Aug 21, 2011)

i tried it once. seems like its way more hassle than its worth. id rather just use a bic8)


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## Rock31 (Sep 30, 2010)

tried at JR, had to cover the ashtray with my dinner plate, never tried again.


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## Engineer99 (Aug 4, 2011)

Not a usual practice for me, but if I have a cedar wrapped cigar, I'll use the cedar to light with.


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## wildturkey (May 10, 2011)

I do it once and awhile to impress my friends.


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## apollyon9515 (Apr 10, 2009)

I've tried a few times with cigars that come wrapped int it, but it never really lights it enough and ill end up using my torch.


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## Snagged (Aug 20, 2010)

I've used spills before because they're neat. It IS a bit of a hassle these days to light a spill because we don't typically have open flames burning around the house. But they are interesting because they take you back to a time when things worked differently. If you had a bunch of spills sitting out, and you lit your room by candlelight or heated it by a fire, you'd have an open flame...need to light a smoke? Grab a spill, light it by the fire heating your study and smoke away.

I've been resisting the urge to buy one of these...like I really NEED another accessory related to my tobacco "problem," as my wife sometimes calls it.

Lee Valley Tools - Important Announcement


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